MIKE COWLEY welcomes half a century of remarkable work, that begins before the Greens and invites a connection to — and not a division from — nature
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Johnson Unleashed: A bloated legacy of lies and failed vanity projects
Boris Johnson’s poorly written memoir confirms his reputation as a prolific liar and deluded fantasist — bringing to mind striking parallels with George IV, from narcissism to womanising, observes STEPHEN ARNELL
EMBARRASSMENT: An 1824 cartoon of a gouty, obese George IV relaxing before nine flattering portraits
ANDREW MURRAY recommends a volume of essays that nail the visionless, racist and neoliberal character of policy under Starmer’s Labour Party
JONATHAN TAYLOR appreciates how, for a black British musician, to walk onstage can be a rebellious act
Since 2023, Strike Map has evolved from digital mapping at a national level to organising ‘mega pickets’ — we believe that mass solidarity with localised disputes prepares the ground for future national action, writes HENRY FOWLER
Like dictators of the past, Trump is seeking an enforcement agency answering only to him, asserts CJ ATKINS
From tens of thousands left abandoned to a militarised ‘looting’ crackdown, Hurricane Katrina laid bare racial inequities and government neglect, writes NATALIA MARQUES
ALEXANDER Boris de Pfeffel Johnson’s autobiography Unleashed invites comparisons between the disgraced former prime minister and George IV, also famously a notorious fantasist.
Unleashed’s poorly written catalogue of self-serving falsehoods, deluded wish fulfilment, indiscretion, exaggeration and sheer bunkum confirm (if needed) our worst fears regarding his suitability for high office. Or, in fact, any office.
As Rory Stewart put it: “Johnson is … the most accomplished liar in public life — perhaps the best liar ever to serve as prime minister. He is equally adept at the ironic jest, the fib and the grand lie; the weasel word and the half-truth; the hyperbolic lie, the obvious lie, and the bullshit lie — which may inadvertently be true. I think he’s one of the most terrible human beings imaginable. He’s a terrible human being as well as a terrible prime minister.”
More from this author
STEPHEN ARNELL casts a critical eye over the sudden rash of challenges to the two-party system on both sides of the Atlantic, noting that today’s performative populist politics sadly lacks Roosevelt’s progressive ‘Bull Moose’ vision of the early 20th century
While Spode quit politics after inheriting an earldom, Farage combines MP duties with selling columns, gin, and even video messages — proving reality produces more shameless characters than PG Wodehouse imagined, writes STEPHEN ARNELL
The fallout from the Kneecap and Bob Vylan performances at Glastonbury raises questions about the suitability of senior BBC management for their roles, says STEPHEN ARNELL
With the news of massive pay rises for senior management while content spend dives STEPHEN ARNELL wonders when will someone call out the greed of these ‘public service’ executives
